New Zealand honours its scientists and technologists

The Royal Society of New Zealand is pleased to see the contributions of some of our brilliant scientists and educators recognised in this New Year’s Honours List. We congratulate them all.

President, Neville Jordan, said, “These honours also reflect well on their colleagues who work long and hard for the benefit of our country. The economic transformation we hear so much about depends heavily on their skills and vision. They are also critical to the health and welfare of New Zealanders who generate that transformation.”

“For example, the work carried out by researcher Peter Gluckman DCNZM is of profound importance to the health of everyone, not just New Zealanders. In his recent book, Mismatch, Professor Gluckman draws attention to the divergence between the age of sexual and brain maturation, which can have such disastrous consequences for our youth, and strong indications that the nutrition of women prior to conception and during gestation can determine a child’s physiological settings, resulting in diabetes, heart disease and tendency to gain weight.”

The public acknowledgement of Peter’s achievements will also be a real boost to the staff of the Liggins Institute at the The University of Auckland, who have contributed to these findings over so many years.”

Those who received honours on 31 December 2007 were:

DCNZM

Professor Peter David GLUCKMAN FRS FRSNZ CNZM, of Auckland.
For services to medicine

CNZM

The Honourable Margaret Elizabeth AUSTIN MNZM CRSNZ of Christchurch.
For services to the community
Professor Gary Richard HAWKE FRSNZ, of Wellington.
For services to education and economics
Professor Sylvia Vine Sheat RUMBALL ONZM, of Palmerston North.
For services to science

ONZM

Dr Graeme Herbert CAMPBELL CRSNZ, of Waitakere.
For services to conservation
Associate Professor Harry Roger Allan ALLEN, of Manukau.
For services to archaeology

NZAM

Dr Timothy George HASKELL, of Lower Hutt.
For services to Antarctic science

QSO

Professor Richard Dogshun BEDFORD FRSNZ, of Hamilton.
For services to geography
Associate Professor Pare Areta KEIHA, of Auckland.
For services to business, education and Maori

MNZM
Honorary Member

Professor Yasushi MURAKI, Kobe, Japan
For Services to Astrophysics

Lottery Health Research Funding for Malaghan Institute

The Royal Society Council is also pleased to note the $700,000 grant to the Malaghan Institute from NZ Lottery Health Research, announced recently. This grant will fund research into cancer, multiple sclerosis and tuberculosis, and perhaps stop the departure of some of our young researchers, an issue which has been of such concern to the scientific community, and to New Zealanders generally. It also rewards the Institute for its excellent track record.

Mr Jordan said “New Zealand is starting to take more of an interest in the research being undertaken here and the people behind it. We are realising that our future absolutely depends on the quality and extent of intellectual property.”

For further information, contact Glenda.lewis@rsnz.org 04 470 5758 or 027 210 0997